Adidas Queen

I am always searching for (to me) unknown models and the 

adidas archive is the perfect place for finding special gems and 

background information. I could spend years digging through 

these shelves without ever getting bored of this infinite treasure 

trove and I dearly miss the days when it was accessible online. 

At my last visit the archive management showed me this shoe 

for personal reference; The Adidas Queen. 

A hi-top indoor training shoe for women from 1987.

What a sweet gesture! Thank you guys, you really hit the nail 

on the head.

A visit at the Adidas Archive

When I visited Herzogenaurach to contribute to the 50 years of 
Superstar exhibition, I of course could not stop myself from also 
saying hello to the wonderful archive team.

I am sure it is not surprising that the Adidas archive is my favorite 
place to visit on the HQ campus and the ladies were so kind to 
put together a small selection of shoes I might like.
Here are some photos I shot in the holy halls. 
All pictures after the jump

The Adidas Archive Book

After all the years of hard work it's finally here:
The Adidas Archive Book.
The adidas story is one of groundbreaking designs, epic moments
and conceiving the all-around sports shoe, worn by the likes of 
Lionel Messi, Run DMC, and Madonna. A mecca for sneaker fans, 
this book presents adidas’s history through more than 350 pairs of 
shoes from the “adidas Archive”, including one-of-a-kind originals, 
vintage models, never-before-seen prototypes, and designs from 
Stella McCartney, Yohji Yamamoto, Parley for the Oceans, and 
more.

50 Years of Superstar; A heritage exhibition at the Adidas HQ

At the beginning of this month I spent a few days in Herzogenaurach 
to visit my favorite place on the Adidas HQ campus; 
The adidas archive.
My connection to the archive goes back quite a few years, so when I 
was asked, if I would like to contribute some pieces from my 
collection to an internal on campus exhibition I was please to help 
out.The exhibition pays homage to the 50th anniversary of the most 
iconic adidas model, the adidas superstar.

To get an exchange going I also took part in a panel discussion with 
adidas original's own Till Jagler, moderated by Martin Gebhardt from the 
archive's history management. We talked about the role of an iconic 
model like the superstar and it's value in today's short trended times, 
as well as the significance of interdisciplinary exchange between the 
brand and the personal perspective of collectors, trendsetters and
creatives. I was honored to represent the female collector, connoisseur
and creative side and talk about my experiences and views, while Till 
brought some essential business, trend and brand insight to the table. 
I have always been an advocate for interdisciplinary work and am so 
happy we were able to make this happen! At the end of the day we all 
are living and working inside our bubble, so I find exchanges and talks 
like this essential for an authentic culture, that isn't solely based on 
consumption and hype.

The superstar is as rich in style as it is in history. It's iconic status is 
unparalleled, as few models have prevailed decades of trends and 
became a status symbol in so many scenes.
I lent a pair of 1986s Adidas ElDorado and a Sweatshirt from the RUN 
DMC collection to the archive and they displayed them beautifully.
















The idea for the on campus exhibition was to create a space 
that lets the employees/visitors check out the displays on their way 
to the canteen or, if interested in more, hang out and learn 
additional details and fun facts about the history of the model, by
scrolling through the info spots that accompany each display and get 
educated on the social, cultural and technical details.















While I was browsing through the info-pods I noticed the employees
streaming into the building for their lunch break. I loved how many 
of them skipped their way to the seating area and went straight to 
the exhibition space to spend their break there and have a look 
around.
Most people know the obvious historical history about the Superstar, 
but it was a pleasure to see that many employees got curious and 
took their time to explore more unknown facts about this icon.

Over all a well curated exhibition that reveals many interesting and
not-so-known-facts without giving the impression of an overload of 
details.
Since this exhibition is not open to the public I thought it would be 
nice to give you a peek into the space an it's rare content.
Enjoy all the pictures and additional infos after the jump

Vintage Adidas Ecstacy hi

Via ebay in a US 10,5

Ellesse Design Counsel F&F Tanker

In Spring 2019, I was privileged to join 7 other creative individuals at 
the ellesseDesignCounsel, placing my own spin on the ellesse Tanker. 
The iconic model was created by Marc Sadler in 1982 for the tennis 
court, but paved the way for the urban market and so many footwear
classics that are making lifestyle/streetwear/sportswear what it is 
today, with it's extravagant design.

In the 80s and 90s tennis in Berlin was kinda the sport for the 
privileged. Especially in the area I grew up in, the former city center 
of Berlin, Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, aka the 'Golden West'. 
A district known for it's glamorous shopping mile, the Kurfürstendamm 
and it's preppy and posh style. 
I played tennis at the Tennis-Club 1899 e.V. Blau-Weiss and heard my 
team mates talk about the greats like Vilas, Borg, Ashe, MacEnroe, 
but specifically the German sensations Becker and Graf. 
Never before had a player won Wimbledon at such a young age (in the 
ellesse Tanker btw) and never before I had experienced a young woman 
represent Germany (and team adidas) on an international level without 
her looks, but merely with her skillset. 
To me these two where the german influencers of the time and it was 
no surprise that ellesse was also part of the style that surrounded me 
when it came to sportswear that was more upscale. Because the 
colourful shoes and apparel where perfect for teenagers and the kids at 
the tennis club usually came from households with the necessary cash 
to support that style. 
So by representing Germany on this Design Counsel team I decided to 
show my personal connection and associations to this model. My aim 
was to create a deluxe version of the iconic original, so I chose a high 
quality leather for the upper and combined it with some subtle snakeskin 
that's supposed reflect the posh style of the tennis clubs in my youth. 
The colour scheme is a little bit brighter than the OGs, like you would 
find it on a beach ball, for some extra summer vibes, because tennis is 
the best played outdoors. Let me know your thoughts on the final 
outcome. 
These are limited to 10 family&friends pairs worldwide, so I might 
do a raffle soon for a lucky person to get their hands on one of these 
special boxes.

See more pictures after the jump